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News/International

Pope Francis accepts a card from Filipino reporter Lynda Jumilla Abalos of ABSCBN television while greeting media aboard the papal flight to Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 12. The card was made by the children of the journalist to welcome the pope to the Philippines.

Filipino Catholic media already planning follow-up to papal visit

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MANILA, Philippines - Long before Pope Francis left the Vatican for his January trip to Asia, Jesuit Father Emmanuel "Nono" Alfonso and his colleagues were already working on the "what's next" part of hosting a papal trip.

Bishops from around the world pray during a Jan. 12 Mass at the Carmelite Monastery in Bethlehem, West Bank. Sixteen bishops of the Holy Land Coordination were on a two-day visit to Gaza Jan 11-12.

Bishops see signs of resilience in Gaza, despite destruction

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BETHLEHEM, West Bank - Despite the immense destruction still evident in Gaza following the war there last summer, the resilience of the people gave hope to 16 bishops of the Holy Land Coordination during their visit to the Gaza Strip Jan. 11-12.

Pope Francis and Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena visit in a presidential office in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan. 13.

Pope tells Sri Lankans reconciliation means dialogue, 'pursuit of truth'

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Arriving in Sri Lanka, a country recovering from two-and-a-half decades of ethnic and religious civil war, Pope Francis said reconciliation would require its people to explore their painful recent history and accept persistent differences within their multicultural society.

People hold a placard that reads "I am Muslim, I am Jewish, I am Catholic, I am Charlie" during a Jan. 8 vigil in Paris, following the mass shooting at the offices of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical newspaper in Paris. Pope Francis condemned the killings of a t least 12 people at the offices of the publication Jan. 7 and denounced all "physical and moral" obstacles to the peaceful coexistence of nations, religions and cultures.

France ponders its response to shootings: Will xenophobia or multiculturalism win?

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PARIS - As France emerges from its worst terrorist attack in decades, a biting novel that imagines the country governed by Islamic law is part of a swirling debate about its basic values. Will the country respond to the shootings with fear and xenophobia, as suggested by the book“Soumission, or Submission — or embrace its multicultural, multifaith identity?

Protesters display signs and carry flags during an Aug. 1 protest in Detroit. More than 150 people protested the persecution of Christians in Iraq, calling on the U.S. government and others to step in to help those given an ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay a heavy tax or be killed in their homeland.

Report: Christians face worsening mistreatment; North Korea tops list

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OXFORD, England - An international report has warned that Christians face worsening mistreatment worldwide and called for "urgent action" by Western governments and church leaders.

Wilfrid Macena, in red, who lost a leg in the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake, battles for the ball during an early morning practice in 2011 on a soccer field in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Macena and two other members of a Haitian amputee soccer team gave Pope Francis a soccer jersey and ball signed by team members during a Jan. 10 papal audience marking the fifth-year anniversary of the magnitude-7 earthquake.

Pope thanks Catholics for helping Haiti, says much more left to do

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VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis thanked Catholics worldwide for helping people in Haiti recover from a devastating earthquake, but said "there is still much work left to do."

embers of Amistad, a nongovernmental organization, and other religious and women's rights organizations hold a banner as they gather near the headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) during a protest in Abidjan, Ivory Coast , May 19. Protesters demanded that West African leaders work together to ensure the release of more than 200 school girls who were abducted by the Boko Haram in Nigeria in April.

Nigerian archbishop calls for unity marches following Boko Haram massacres

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Nigerian Roman Catholic Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama says his country needs a similar march to the one held in Paris on Sunday (Jan. 11) to pay tribute to victims of Islamist militant attacks.

Father Jude Nicholas leads members of the choir during rehearsal at Galle Face Green Jan. 11 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Pope Francis is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka Jan. 13-15.

Sri Lankans work to finalize the little details for Pope Francis' visit

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Hours before Pope Francis was to arrive in Sri Lanka, people in Colombo were busy with final preparations.

Some women from the Samburu community in Kenya have been subjected to female gential mutilation as part of traditional rite of passage from girlhood to womanhood. Kenyan religious leaders are campaigning against the mainstreaming of the practice in hospitals.

African church leaders worry about the ‘medicalization’ of female genital mutilation

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NAIROBI, Kenya - International rights groups, churches and activists are escalating campaigns against female genital mutilation now that a new practice has emerged in which girls are checking into hospitals to have the procedure.

Msgr. Jesus-Norriel Bandojo, a priest in the the Office of Exorcism of the Manila Archdiocese in the Philippines, gives a blessing and says a prayer of deliverance over "sacramentals" in late October at the archdiocese offices' chapel to ward off the pos sibility of evil forces attaching themselves to the religious items.

In Philippines, spirituality includes warfare against forces of darkness

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MANILA, Philippines - In the months leading up to Pope Francis' visit to the Philippines Jan. 15-19, Church leaders emphasized "spiritual preparation," such as a special prayer for the Pope at the end of each Mass and a reminder to carry out small acts of kindness toward the less fortunate.

Father Cosme Jose Costa displays an icon of Blessed Joseph Vaz in late October at the Society of Pilar headquarters in Pilar, India. Father Costa's 1938 birth was accepted by the Vatican as the miracle needed to beatify Blessed Vaz in 1995. Blessed Vaz w ill be canonized by Pope Francis Jan. 14 at the Vatican in Sri Lanka.

Indian priest, ‘miracle son,’ are eager for Blessed Vaz canonization

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PILAR, INDIA - Sri Lankan Catholics are looking forward to Pope Francis’ canonization of Blessed Joseph Vaz Jan. 14, but the enthusiasm and eagerness of Fr. Cosme Jose Costa stands apart.

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